


the mere sight of you

by ExtraPenguin



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-31
Updated: 2020-03-31
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:20:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23416627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ExtraPenguin/pseuds/ExtraPenguin
Summary: How Saw Gerrera met Bor Gullet.
Relationships: Saw Gerrera/Bor Gullet
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4
Collections: Space Swap 2020





	the mere sight of you

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MiriamKenneath](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiriamKenneath/gifts).



"Their radar will see us," the pilot warned.

"They don't actually have full coverage of all approach vectors," Saw Gerrera said. "Take us in at thirty degrees south on a glancing angle on NaJedha's side."

"I'm not performing any more lithobraking stunts for you," his pilot grumbled.

Saw clapped the back of her seat. "Don't crash, don't get seen." He lumbered back to his own seat, cheap low-grade cybernetic replacement leg slowing him down and twinging with every step.

Even this short journey was arduous enough he needed to lift his breath mask to his face and inhale. His double bind was ironic: he couldn't live without the pressurized armor suit, but with the heavy armor suit, he needed more supplementary oxygen.

His pilot – the best the Partisans had to offer – took them in on a slow approach, letting them drift up to Jedha without power, only lightly tapping the thrusters to orient them the right way for atmospheric entry. The Imperials paid no heed to what they assumed was a derelict; by the time the pilot turned on the thrusters to decelerate them from their disintegration speeds to landing, Jedha's rocky bulk was in between them and the Holy City.

The ride was rough. Not that there was any other way: the required deceleration would jolt anyone around. Saw bounced inside his armor suit as it expressed a desire to become one with the transport floor. His aching chest felt like a grenade was going off on it.

Suddenly, it stopped. There was a moment of stillness, then some small motions, and finally a surprisingly light touchdown.

"Well done," Saw said when he was sure they'd stopped moving. "Let's find a cave for our operation."

His Partisans scurried out onto Jedha's cold sands. The pilot did the final post-flight checks. Saw Gerrera sighed, alone with his bad lungs and badly replaced leg, and waited for others to do what he wanted to be doing.

Years fighting wars had given Saw the ability to doze off whenever he wished, and also the ability to wake up just before the first signs of trouble. He jolted awake in his armor suit, with his cybernetic leg, and waited to see what had sent his sixth sense tingling.

The shuttle door flew open. "Boss!" one of his Partisans called out. "We found a suitable cave, but there's ... there's something in it already."

"What sort of something?" Saw prompted.

"It's ... alive and immobile, we think? But large."

Well, this was interesting. Saw heaved himself up onto his legs. "Show me."

He was led across a desert of sand-covered rock. The transport wasn't that far from the rocky mesa they were leading him to, but the dry, dusty air bit his lungs and his cybernetic leg didn't quite work as it should. He had to stop twice to take a breath from his spare oxygen mask.

The actual cave was just as cold as the outdoors, but had no wind, so it felt more tolerable. Saw waited a moment for his eyes to adjust, then shuffled inwards with an appraising eye. The roof was high but not ovely so, the passages were wide enough, and the ground not that bumpy. It'd need some blasting and carving, and the installation of doors and partitions, but it was excellent raw material.

"Here," the Partisan said, and stepped aside.

Saw walked into the branch. It was a dead end, he noted, and there was something large within. He dug out a flashlight.

White eyes shone from purplish flesh. Saw could feel something at the edge of his mind, trying to peer in-

"It's a Mairan," he said, stepping back. "Never thought I'd see one in the flesh."

"A Mairan?"

"They can feel your thoughts. No lie is safe; they will know the truth. The unfortunate side-effect is that one tends to lose one's mind."

"...should we find another cave system?" his Partisan asked.

"Oh, no." A smile made its way to Saw Gerrera's lips. "This one has more than we dared hope for."

But if he wanted the Mairan on their side, he'd have to win its trust – and he didn't have any knowledge of what it might eat.

Well, there were no attestations of it eating people. He limped back into the cavern.

His Partisan called after him behind him, but he had a mission. _What do you need?_ he intently thought.

Something brushed against his mind. He could feel it as a gentle caress.

Silence. Hesitation.

An image of an ocean floated to Saw's mind. It was followed by vivid thoughts of fish schooling in the sunlight.

"Do we have any fish?" Saw asked. "We need to feed our new friend. Bring a bucket of water, too."

Some scurrying later, there were live fish in a bucket. Saw placed it within easy reach of the Mairan's tentacles, then thought intently about fish swimming in a bucket.

The Mairan lifted a tentacle and placed it in the bucket. In the cave's gloom, Saw didn't see how it ate, but received a distinct impression that the fish were gone. The Mairan left a tentacle in the water.

_Bor Gullet._

_...your name?_ Saw asked, hoping it understood the concept.

Assent.

"Hello, Bor Gullet. I'm Saw Gerrera."

Curiosity. Bor Gullet poked at Saw's mind.

Would it hurt less if one invited one of them in? Saw decided to try.

Bor Gullet's presence brushed over his mind, cautiously on the surface at first, then sinking deeper into the thoughts and cracks. His breath quickened as he felt his memories be rifled through, in orders and connections he'd never have dreamt of making. He could feel himself be transformed with this remembering, and understood, now, what they meant when they said the Mairans removed all there was of the self.

The trip through his memories stopped at a slideshow of things Imperials had done to people and things he had done in the name of stopping the Imperials. Bor Gullet was curious.

Saw gently led him through all the memories that had led him to defy Imperial tyranny, and the memories that had led him to choose his means. _It was necessary._

Silence.

Then Bor Gullet hesitantly reached out a tentacle until it was almost close enough to touch Saw. A sensation of togetherness floated at the edges of Saw's mind, accompanied by hesitation.

Saw reached out to pet Bor Gullet's tentacle. It was dry and leathery under his palm; perhaps he should have someone mist the air. His skin tingled where they touched.

"Welcome to the Partisans, Bor Gullet," Saw said. "I'm sure there'll be use for someone of your talents."

Bor Gullet exuded satisfaction.


End file.
